Welcome to issue 05

You’re likely familiar with The Kelpies, the extraordinary steel horse-head sculptures that rear above the Forth estuary. Towering up to a height of some 30 metres, the silvery colossuses are inspired not just by local folklore but by the working heritage of the region; in their scale, they capture something ineffably powerful. They’re the work of acclaimed sculptor Andy Scott, whose portfolio of work spans the globe from Falkirk to Queensland. We speak to him on page 52.

The raw grace of the Kelpies serves as a kind of totem for the issue as a whole. Elsewhere in these pages, we spend a week on the beautifully remote island of Eilean Shona, where writer JM Barrie was inspired to create Neverland. We also take a long delve into the natural glories of the Isle of Skye, exploring the nooks and crannies that make it such an iconic destination, and pay tribute to that most elusive but alluring of wild Scottish animals: the pine marten.